Kawagoe bonus visit

A manhole cover in Kawagoe with an old city scene
on it that includes its iconic Time Bell Tower

An old kura (fire-proof warehouse) building that now is

home to a knife store in the old downtown of Kawagoe

Puppet Ponyo considers where she wants
to visit next in the historic town

As many of those who know me well can confirm, I like to plan and follow plans -- at work but also in my leisure time. At the same time though, I can be flexible -- and if opportunities arise, take advantage of them by incorporating them into a new plan.

Such was the case on the final day of my most recent Japan vacation -- in that I originally planned to spend it in Tokyo, figuring that I wouldn't have enough time to go to some place else and then make it back in time to catch my airport limousine (a fancy word for a scheduled bus) and my evening flight out of the country. But this was before my Tokyo-based friend proposed that we make use of part of that day to go on a short excursion to Kawagoe, a town located around 40 kilometers away from central Tokyo but reachable by a direct train from Shinjuku Station (the major transport hub that happened to be the nearest train and subway station to my hotel).

In addition to its colorful Kawagoe Festival, this town is famous for its charcoal-blackened kurazukuri, fire-proofed buildings that traditionally housed warehouses and also were the homes of merchants. Although I arrived at the wrong time for the festival (though I was close enough that I was able to witness people preparing for the occasion in front of of one of the large floats put on public display for much of the year), I was able to view the distinctive karazukuri and more on what amounted to a whistle-stop tour of the town that gained prominence on account of it having been strategically located along the ancient highway to the Japanese capital.

Admittedly, if I had had more time to spare, I would have done such as spent more time at the Kitain Temple -- and checked out its Gohyaku Rakan (5oo (or so) statues of the disciples of Buddha. But this time around, the circumstances did not permit this Rather than be upset about this though, I was thankful that I managed a visit to Kawagoe at all.

In addition, I am among those who subscribe to the view that a visit to another country or place is considered a good one if one feels that there still are things left that one wants to see and do at the end of the visit. Put another way: this state of affairs means that one would like to return to that country or place. And goodness knows that I'm already thinking of my next proposed visit to Japan -- a country with many interesting sights, seemingly perennially great food, pretty good draft beer and many incredibly gracious people that I find myself appreciating and loving all the more with every visit to it. :)

Light (This week's Photo Hunt theme)

On my previous blog entry about my dining experiences on my most recent Japan vacation, I mentioned my having had dinner at Nagatacho Kurosawa -- the shabu shabu and soba specialist branch of the Restaurant Kurosawa Group established and operated by members of film-making great Akira Kurosawa's family -- and the experience having left my wallet a good bit lighter. Alternatively put: it was the most expensive meal I've ever had -- or at least paid for -- in Japan!

To be fair, I expected this to be so. Among other things, Nagatacho Kurosawa is located in Chiyoda-ku, the same Tokyo ward as the Imperial Palace, the Japanese Prime Minister's official residence, the National Diet Building, the Supreme Court and some fifteen embassies. In addition, the soba we would be eating there is premium handmade soba -- the kind that's got so much substance you feel obliged to eat it slowly and carefully strand by strand for fear of choking to death on it (and yes, a far cry indeed from the light and cheap machine-made soba that far more people are acquainted with!).

Housed in a custom-built three-storey wooden building modeled after a structure in Akira Kurosawa's Yojimbo, the restaurant is the kind that I'd be loathe to enter on my own -- so I was very glad that I would be dining there that evening with a friend (the same one who took me to a baseball game a few evenings before). In her company, I felt more able to relax and soak in the atmosphere of the place as well as leisurely enjoy the delicious food and drink on offer. (We both went for the set meal which had a variety of tasty seasonal dishes build up to the piece de resistance that was the soba (and included a bowl of the soba dipping sauce mixed with hot water!) and had some junmai-shu sake to accompany the food).

A note about the lighting inside the restaurant: It was pleasantly soft and in line with the politely unobtrusive service. For photo-taking, however, I'd actually have prefer to use a flash but it was the kind of place where I would feel like a boor if I were to do so! Consequently, my Nagatacho Kurosawa food photos are on the dim side -- as can be seen by way of the example I've included in this Photo Hunt entry.

Alternatively, I did use a flash when taking the exterior photos but it really was dark that night! Looking at them though, I think the overall darkness adds some atmosphere to the photos -- so much so that I am glad that I went to Nagatacho Kurosawa for dinner rather than lunch and thus didn't see it in the harsh light of day! :)

Japan eats

An unagi (freshwater eel), egg and rice dish
I had in Kawagoe that smelt and tasted heavenly!

Sashimi (and sushi) is expectedly fresh and good
-- and actually pretty affordable -- in Japan

Surely it's not just me who thinks this dish that includes
a mentaiko center and tiny white fish on a bed of rice
resembles the Japanese flag? ;O

A couple of weeks ago (i.e., a couple of weeks into what has turned into my on-going Japan blogging marathon), a good friend of mine here in Hong Kong expressed her surprise that I had yet to blog all that much about the food I had eaten on my recent Japan trip.

To her and others who have been wondering: I definitely did eat a lot and well in the land of sushi, izakayas, yakitori, tempura, soba and so much more. I additionally ate a wide range of food -- in terms of culinary variety but also price (with the latter going all the way from onigiri breakfasts costing less than 150 yen a pop to a 6,300 yen (minus drinks) dinner at Nagatacho Kurosawa, a soba and shabu shabu specialty restaurant run by the family of Akira Kurosawa).

An American friend of mine told me that when he visited Japan, he only ate food from konbini. Although there was no way that I would entirely follow suit, I did go to konbini to get things like my onigiri breakfasts -- particularly if I had an early train to catch (like on the days that I went to Nikko and Kamakura).

Furthermore, there were times when I gave priority to sight-seeing over serious food hunting by doing such as eating my meals at train stations. But this being Japan, the food to be had at train stations can actually be pretty good -- and as it so happens, I ended up having what I actually reckon is the best tempura I have ever had in my life at a tempura-ya in Tokyo Station in the form of a less than 2,000 yen tempura moriawase lunch set that included seafood and various vegetables including an extremely strong tasting whole onion!

On other occasions, however, foodie me made it a point to eat the regional specialty of the place I was visiting. Thus it was that I had yuba soba in Nikko and unagi in Kawagoe. Re the former: I'm glad I tried yuba but it's not something I'd be making a beeline for again any time soon. Alternatively, the unagi meal I had in Kawagoe really was memorably delicious -- and the sweet smell of that basted unagi and sweet egg accompaniment really was great too!

In addition, I could not pass up making a return visit to Sushi Dai while on a trip which had me based in Tokyo. Although I could not experience the thrill of discovery this time around, I really still do reckon that this Tsukiji Fish Market sushi-ya is not only worth paying close to 4,000 yen for its omakase set but also waiting in line for one hour or more to get into for breakfast!

And while I decided to restrict myself to one meal at Sushi Dai per visit to Tokyo, my one meal there this time around served to remind me that sushi and sashimi really is so very good in Japan -- and also a bargain in terms of the price that one pays for quality (in that I'd estimate that prices in Japan are one third what one would pay for the equivalent quality in Hong Kong). Consequently, after getting reminded of this fact by way of that very good sushi breakfast, I could not resist eating one sushi and/or sashimi meal at least once a day for the rest of this trip!

In conclusion: even though I did do more than just eat while in Japan, the meals I had while in that country definitely were a factor in making me enjoy my vacation there as much as I did. And even though there was just one day when I'd go so far as to state that a particular meal was the absolute highlight of a single twenty-four hour cycle of my recent vacation (i.e., the final day of my vacation -- which saw me eating that unagi, egg and rice affair in Kawagoe), I also truly can see that Japan is one of those parts of the world where super foodies might want to go to just to eat! :b

The inevitable pilgrimage to Sanrio Puroland (Photo-essay)

Before I went to Japan this last time, I mentioned to a friend my intention of paying another visit to Kiddy Land. Shortly before I left, she -- who is well acquainted with my Hello Kitty love -- sent me a text message with wishes that I'd enjoy my visit to Kitty Land.

In honesty, I actually had not originally planned on visiting Sanrio Puroland, the Hello Kitty-themed indoor amusement park in Tama Center, a city in its own right that also is a suburb of Tokyo (as opposed to Harmonyland, the Hello Kitty-themed outdoor amusement park in Oita, Kyushu). But after feeling a bit "shrine-and-templed out" at the end of the previous day (spent for the most part in shrine and temple-filled Kamakura), I thought that it'd be good to to visit a temple to kawaii-ness.

So off I went to "Hello Kitty's Town" via a train with images of Hello Kitty on everyone of its carriages (in particular, its stickers with messages against sticking one's hand in between the carriage doors!). And while I have to admit to initially feeling a bit overwhelmed by the commercialism as well as cute-siness of Sanrio Puroland, it's also true enough that the afternoon "Believe" parade got me all aquiver and a believer once more in the power of Kitty Chan and her ilk to make people smile and all happy inside... :)

Hello Kitty hands out a safety warning
on board the train to Sanrio Puroland

Visual proof that Tama Center
really is Hello Kitty's Town! :b

Imagine the excitement upon
getting this close to Sanrio Puroland...

Kitty Chan in school girl garb at the first
of two shows I watched at Sanrio Puroland

What may well be cuteness and plushie overload
for some others had me thinking "I want!!!"

Hello Kitty in princess mode at the afternoon show

Dear Daniel and a multitude of other Sanrio characters
also take part in the afternoon parade/show

She may be a Studio Ghibli creation but Puppet Ponyo

-- seen posing here with Hello Kitty, Dear Daniel and co
-- could not be kept out of the fun at Sanrio Puroland :b

Broken (This week's Photo Hunt theme)

Don't bother to look for cracks in -- or broken bits from -- the statues and figurines in the above photos taken at Kamakura's Hasedera Temple (the top most one) and Kawagoe's Kitain Temple (the bottom two). Even if you do find them though, they're not the point of this Photo Hunt entry. Rather, it's the broken hearts and dreams that are behind each and every one of the smaller figurines in the pictures.

Although he is not the main deity worshiped in the Hasadera and Kitain Temples, there are areas in these sacred spaces devoted to Jizo Bodhisattva (aka Ojizi-Sama, Ksitigarbha, etc.). Of Indian origin (like Gautama Buddha himself), this bodhisattva is particularly revered among East Asian Buddhists -- and beloved in Japan, where he is popularly venerated as the guardian of unborn, aborted, miscarried or stillborn infants.

Put another way: every figurine in the photo represents people's unborn, aborted, miscarried or stillborn babies. Looking at them, it's not just their numbers that can overwhelm. For often placed amidst the cold stone or cement statuettes are stuffed toys, tiny shoes and other items associated with babyhood.

Since I don't want to leave readers of this entry's text all depressed, here's ending this entry with a link to a heartwarming Japanese fable entitled Ojizo-san, the The Grateful Statues. I do hope that you will click on that link and read the tale -- because, if nothing else, it will make you realize that generosity and the appreciation of it does cross borders and cultures. (And on a lighter note, please feel free to check out a cute Jizo statue and other kawaii elements of Japan in my previous blog entry!)

Kawaii sights in Kamakura and beyond

An unexpected(ly) kawaii sight encountered
in the grounds of Hase Temple (Hasedera)

Spotted on the road to the Tsurugaoka Hachimangu shrine:
a general Studio Ghibli shop and one devoted solely
to fans of Kiki's Delivery Service (particularly Jiji the cat)!

What do you think of when you see or hear the word "Japan"? For some people, it's Zen -- the austere aesthetics as well as meditative beliefs. For some older folks (particularly Asians who lived through the second world war), it's that terrible conflict and life under Japanese military occupation. And for certain other folks especially after the events of March 11 of this year, it's earthquakes, tsunamis and nuclear scares.

However, I also get the sense that for a whole lot of people for some time now, Japan is linked most with the notion of a fondness for the kawaii. And a visit to the Land of the Rising Sun is going to only strengthen this perception -- what with squeals and murmurings of "kawaii-neh!" often peppering the air (including along the paths leading to major temples and shrines like those at Asakusa, Dazaifu and Kamakura) and kawaii sights seemingly being found in every direction that one looks.

I'm not ashamed to admit that some of the kawaii sights I encountered on my recent Japan vacation really did make me go "awwww" and want to squeal with delight myself. And of course I ended up buying my share of kawaii items (at places like Kiddy Land and Tokyo station's Tokyo Character Street) -- both for myself and also as fun gifts for friends.

At the same time, however, there were certain items that took my breath away in terms of their sheer unexpectedness and audacity -- such as cell phone accessories in which the face of the Great Buddha of Kamakura was substituted by Hello Kitty (see an example here) or Doraemon! Frankly, I wondered if they bordered on the sacrilegious. But judging from the reactions, few -- if any -- people who saw them seemed all that discernibly nonplussed about these items' existence,

Still, while I couldn't bring myself to purchase examples of Hello Kitty-faced mini Daibutsus, I have to admit that I did come away with a handkerchief bearing the image of Kitty Chan seated on the lap of the Great Kamakura Buddha (like can be seen here) -- because, if nothing else, it really seemed to say much about as well as encapsulate contemporary Japanese (pop) culture to my mind as well as does look pretty kawaii-neh! ;b

Kamakura sights (Photo-essay)

First, there was a Kamakura-themed Photo Hunt entry. Now, here's following up with a Kamakura-themed photo-essay. And lest there be any doubt: here's stating for the record that I not only enjoyed my (short) visit to the place but I also very much endorse this photogenic city's efforts to be given due recognition by UNESCO and placed on that United Nations agency's world heritage list:-

Kamakura is a city by the sea -- and for those who are
wondering, I (too) couldn't help but think of
the disastrous tsunami that hit Japan earlier this year
when I viewed this actually pretty idyllic coastal scene

The main building of the Hasadera from whose high
vantage point I took this photo essay's first photo

View inside the Benten-kutsu Cave located in the vicinity
of the Hasadera -- and is home to a shrine to
the Shinto goddess Benzaiten (who actually
also is the Hindu goddess Saraswathi!)

Trust the incorrigible Puppet Ponyo to be unable to resist
posing for a photo with the tolerant Daibutsu (aka
Great Buddha of Kamakura)!

The Sasuke Inari Shrine is out of the way and has a
steep entryway but is worth checking out for the sheer
preponderance of fox statues to be found in its area

The green surroundings of the Sasuke Inari Shrine
in Kamakura also made it so that it was where I felt
like that great forest spirit Totoro
was most likely to be found in the vicinity!

Inside the cave area of the Zenairai Benten Shrine
whose visitors are encouraged to wash their money
and hope that doing so will double its amount!

View out to the sea along Kamakura's main boulevard
from the top of the Hachimangu Shrine's main stairs

And should this photo-essay leave you thirsting for more, then this means you'll have some sense of how much I'd like to not only share more photos of Kamakura but also spend more time in that lovely city that's home to many, many temples and shrines but nonetheless feels like it's so very full of life and what human (not just spiritual) life has to offer! :b